The one thing that all the great wide outs have in common is their ability to run great routes. There are so many things that go into great route running, but the ability to manipulate the defender by stemming their route. In simple terms, the stem of the route is the line the wide out takes getting to his breakpoint. Manipulating the stem of the route in order to gain advantageous leverage on the defender is key to putting the wide out in a position to win. Read the report....

The one thing that all the great wide outs have in common is their ability to run great routes. There are so many things that go into great route running, but the ability to manipulate the defender by stemming their route. In simple terms, the stem of the route is the line the wide out takes getting to his breakpoint. Manipulating the stem of the route in order to gain advantageous leverage on the defender is key to putting the wide out in a position to win. I have always thought playing defensive back is one of the most difficult positions to play on the field simple because of the “unknown” factor. For that reason, using the stem of the route to create or keep leverage is paramount. At the end of the day, playing wide out is about getting from point A to point B as fast and efficient as possible and using the stem of the route to create leverage allows us to do this.

Leverage Identification

For us, everything begins in the meeting room. Ultimately a wide out’s success is determined by his ability to know and understand his job within the overall scheme of the offense and of any individual play. I can have the fastest and most athletic player in the world playing for me; but if that player does not know where to go and how to get there he is useless. It is important for a WR to identify the leverage necessary in their route to get to the breakpoint as efficient as possible and able to win. Once they have identified the necessary leverage, they can stem the route. Here is how we define inside leverage and outside leverage:

Inside Leverage

We define inside leverage as being between the defender and the football on the defender’s side that is closest to the football. Slants, digs, hard post, and crossing routes are examples of routes in which a WR would want to get inside leverage on the defender. For example, if the receiver gets inside leverage off his release he then maintains his leverage through the stem of his route.

Outside Leverage

We define outside leverage as being between the defender and the football on the defender’s side that is farthest away from the football. Outs, comebacks, and corner routes are examples of routes in which a WR would want to get outside leverage on the defender.

Now that we have established the concept of leverage, we can begin to cover using the stem of the route to achieve the leverage the receiver needs to win the route. Again, at the end of the day, playing receiver is all about getting from point A to point B as fast and efficiently as possible.

Coaching the Stem

The stem of the route is the line the WR takes getting to his break point. That line could look very different play to play based on the route and the defense. We talk about the stem of the route as a mechanism to achieve the leverage needed to win a route.

There are so many variables that go in to determining what type of stem a WR will need for a specific route. An easy rule of thumb is simply get your body in a position to be between the defender and the football. There are a couple things to keep in mind when teaching the types of stems needed for routes.

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The three identification points that Coach Zimmerman uses to teach his players about identifying and accessing leverage.

The important things to remember when coaching the stems of routes are, where does the route fit into the scheme of the football play, what split do I need, and coverage? Using the stem of the route to manipulate the defender is a skill that can be learned over time. However, over the years, I have come to realize that route running in many ways is more of an art rather than a strict science. There are so many variables that often times I just look prepare my guys in such a way that they can better use their athleticism and creativity to win routes. Again, at the end of the day playing WR is all about getting from point A to point B as fast and efficient as possible and manipulating the defender with the stem of the route is an easy way to do just that.

Meet Coach Zimmerman: Coach Zimmerman currently serves as the Wide Receivers Coach for the Scots. Zimmerman comes to Maryville after spending the past four seasons as the Wide Receivers Coach, Video Coordinator and Camp Coordinator with Tusculum College. There, his receivers helped produce the Division II all-time leading passer, while he coached four All-American receivers in his four years.

His receiving corps set the school record for receptions, while also setting the school record for yards in a game. He also coached Justin Houston to become a three-time All-American and three-time First-Team All-South Atlantic Conference performer. He ranked No. 2 nationally in receptions, while setting the South Atlantic Conference record.

Before his stint with the Pioneers, Zimmerman was an Offensive Graduate Assistant with East Stroudsburg University from 2011-12. From 2009 to 2011, Zimmerman spent time in the high school ranks, serving as Wide Receivers Coach with Cleveland High School and the Offensive Coordinator and QB/Wide Receivers Coach for Cardinal Gibbons High School.